In this article, we take a look at the best cancer hospitals in South Africa, we also look at cancer in general, various concepts,
and treatment methods used by oncologists in treating cancer.
At the end of this article, answers to various questions that you may have are also provided, nonetheless, you may leave any other questions you have using the comment section.
The second greatest cause of death worldwide is cancer. Heart disease is the only medical illness that claims more lives.
More than 10 million individuals globally passed away from cancer in 2021. That equates to one death every six.
Each year, there are about 600,000 cancer-related fatalities in the United States and 80,000 in Canada.
The remainder takes place in nations all across the world. In low- or middle-income nations, the disease claims the lives of almost 7 out of every 10 people.
The Cure for Cancer
The type and stage of a person’s cancer, the sort of treatment they can receive, and other factors all affect whether or not their cancer can be cured.
Different malignancies have varying chances of being cured. But every malignancy requires a unique approach to treatment. Cancer cannot be cured in a single way.
Remission or Cure?
A period of time known as remission occurs when the cancer is responding to therapy or is under control.
Remission is sometimes mistakenly thought to suggest that cancer has been cured, however, that may not always be the case.
All cancer-related symptoms disappear, and no tests can detect cancer cells during complete remission.
Cancer decreases but does not totally disappear during partial remission.
Cancer decreases but does not totally disappear during partial remission.
Remissions may continue for a few weeks or many years. Depending on the cancer kind, treatment may or may not continue during remission.
Years may pass in complete remissions, and eventually, it may be believed that cancer has been cured. Another remission may be feasible with additional treatment if cancer recurs.
A cure denotes the completion of all necessary treatments, the cessation of further therapy, and the absence of the likelihood of cancer returning.
A doctor rarely has the complete assurance that cancer won’t return. It typically takes time to determine whether cancer will return.
However, the likelihood that cancer won’t return increases with the length of time a person has been cancer-free.
Doctors will more frequently refer to cancer as being “in remission” rather than “cured” when therapy seems to be working.
Various Treatment Options for Cancer
Surgery, radiation, drugs, and other therapies are used in cancer treatment to eradicate cancer, reduce cancer, or halt the spread of cancer.
There are numerous cancer therapies. You might undergo one treatment or a combination of treatments, depending on your specific circumstance.
Radiofrequency Ablation
During this procedure, cancer cells are heated with electrical energy, which kills the cells.
A tiny needle is inserted by a physician via the skin or an incision into the cancer tissue during radiofrequency ablation.
The surrounding tissue heats up when high-frequency radiation goes through the needle, destroying the cells in the area.
Clinical Trials
Clinical trials are research projects that look at novel cancer treatment strategies. There are thousands of cancer clinical trials ongoing.
Hormone Therapy
Your body’s hormones can fuel certain cancers. Breast cancer and prostate cancer are two examples. It may be possible to inhibit the growth of cancer cells by eliminating those hormones from the body or by blocking their effects.
Targeted Drug Therapy
Targeted medication therapy focuses on particular cancer cell defects that enable cancer cells to survive.
Cryoablation
With this procedure, cancer cells are frozen to death. A slender, wand-like needle (cryoprobe) used in cryoablation is introduced through your skin and right into the malignant tumor.
The cryoprobe is pumped with gas to freeze the tissue.
The tissue is then given time to defrost. During the same therapy session, the freezing and thawing procedure is performed numerous times to destroy the cancer cells.
Radiation Therapy
High-powered energy beams, such as X-rays or protons, are used in radiation therapy to kill cancer cells.
Radiation therapy devices can either be implanted inside or outside of your body (external beam radiation).
Bone Marrow Transplant
The substance inside your bones called bone marrow is where blood cells are created from blood stem cells. Your own bone marrow stem cells or those from a donor can be used in a bone marrow transplant, often known as a stem cell transplant.
Your doctor can treat your cancer with stronger doses of chemotherapy thanks to a bone marrow transplant. Infected bone marrow may also be replaced with it.
Surgery
Surgery’s main objective is to completely remove the malignancy, if possible.
Immunotherapy
The biological therapy known as immunotherapy makes use of the immune system to treat cancer.
Because your immune system does not detect cancer as an outside invader, it can thrive unchecked inside your body.
Your immune system can “see” the cancer and fight it with the aid of immunotherapy.
Chemotherapy
Drugs are used in chemotherapy to kill cancer cells.
The Deadliest Cancers
The leading causes of cancer-related death in 2022 include:
- Deaths from lung cancer: 130,180
- Deaths from colorectal cancer: 52,580
- Deaths from pancreatic cancer: 49,830
- 43,780 deaths from breast cancer
- Deaths from prostate cancer: 34,500
- Deaths from liver cancer: 30,520
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Best Cancer Hospitals in South Africa
Oncology is the medical term for cancer. All forms of cancer are treated by the oncology department, which also conducts research and studies, and looks for novel cancer treatments or strategies to slow its spread.
A cancer specialist is referred to as an oncologist. Oncology techniques can be either surgical, non-surgical, or radiation-based as you have seen from the previous section.
Following a thorough evaluation of your medical condition, your doctor will choose the best course of action for you. Below are the best cancer hospitals in South Africa:
Midlands Medical Centre (MMC) Private Hospital
Location: 162 Masukwana St, Pietermaritzburg, 3201, South Africa
Website: Link
Busamed Hillcrest Private Hospital
Location: 471 Kassier Rd, Assagay, Outer West Durban, 3610, South Africa
Website: Link
Mediclinic Plettenberg Bay
Location: Muller St, Plettenberg Bay, 6600, South Africa
Website: Link
Ethekwini Hospital and Heart Centre, Durban
Location: 11 Riverhorse Drive, Riverhorse Valley Business Estate, Durban
Website: Link
Life Bayview Private Hospital, Mossel Bay
Location: Cnr Alhof and Ryk Tulbach Streets, Mossel Bay, 6506
Website: https://www.lifehealthcare.co.za/hospitals/western-cape/mossel-bay/life-bay-view-private-hospital/
Life Rosepark Hospital, Bloemfontein
Location: 57 Gustav Crescent Fichardt park Bloemfontein 9301
Website: https://www.lifehealthcare.co.za/hospitals/free-state/bloemfontein/life-rosepark-hospital/
Busamed Paardevlei Private Hospital, Cape Town
Location: Paardevlei Estate, 4 Gardner Williams Ave, Paardevlei, Cape Town, 7130, South Africa
Website: Link
Mediclinic Louis Leipoldt, Cape Town
Location: Broadway St, Bellville West A, Cape Town, 7530, South Africa
Website: Link
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Mediclinic Panorama, Cape Town
Location: Rothschild Blvd, Panorama, Cape Town, 7500, South Africa
Website: Link
Busamed Gateway Private Hospital, Umhlanga
Location: 36-38 Aurora Dr, Umhlanga Rocks, Umhlanga, 4319, South Africa
Website: Link
Lenmed Shifa Hospital, Durban
Location: 482 Randles Road, Durban, 4091
Website: Link
Mediclinic Cape Gate & Mediclinic Cape Gate Day Clinic, Cape Town
Location: Cnr Okavango and Tanner Roads –Brackenfell – Cape Town, 7560
Website: Link
Mediclinic George
Location: 2 Gloucester Ave, George Central, George, 6530, South Africa
Website: Link
Busamed Lowveld Private Hospital, Mbombela
Location: 10 Rothery St, Sonheuwel Central, Mbombela, 1200, South Africa
Website: Link
Mediclinic Ermelo
Location: 25 Mel Mentz Street, Ermelo, 2356
Website: Link
Cormed Clinic, Vanderbijlpark
Location: Pasteur Blvd, Vanderbijlpark C. W. 1, Vanderbijlpark, 1911, South Africa
Website: Link
Mediclinic Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch
Location: 1 Elsie Du Tolt Drive, Stellenbosch, 7600
Website: Link
Life Hilton Private Hospital, Hilton
Location: Corner of Hilton Avenue & Monzali Drive, Hilton, 3245
Website: https://www.lifehealthcare.co.za/hospitals/kwazulu-natal/pietermaritzburg/life-hilton-private-hospital/
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Mediclinic Milnerton, Cape Town
Location: 117 Racecourse Rd, Milnerton, Cape Town, 7441, South Africa
Website: Link
Midvaal Private Hospital, Vereeniging
Location: 1 Nile Dr, Three Rivers, Vereeniging, 1935, South Africa
Website: Link
Busamed Modderfontein Private Hospital, Modderfontein
Location: Ext 12, 4 Cransley Cres, Long Lake, Lethabong, 2090, South Africa
Website: Link
Melomed Bellville Private Hospital, Cape Town
Location: Cnr Voortrekker Rd &, A J W St, Bellville, Cape Town, 7535, South Africa
Website: Link
Melomed Claremont Private Hospital, Cape Town
Location: Cnr Imam Haron &, Selous Rd, Claremont, Cape Town, 7708, South Africa
Website: Link
Ahmed Al-Kadi Private Hospital, Durban, South Africa
Location: 490 Jan Smuts Hwy, Mayville, Durban, 4058, South Africa
Website: Link
Mediclinic Hoogland, Bethlehem
Location: De Leeuw St, Bethlehem, 9701, South Africa
Website: Link
Wilmed Park Private Hospital, Klerksdorp, North West Province, South Africa
Location: C/R Amestis & Marmer Streets, Wilkoppies, Klerksdorp, 2571
Website: Link
Zuid-Afrikaans Hospital, Pretoria, South Africa
Location: 255 Bourke St, Muckleneuk, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
Website: Link
Mediclinic Vergelegen, Somerset, Western Cape
Location: Main Road, Somerset West, 7130
Website: Link
Mediclinic Victoria, Tongaat
Location: 35 High St, Gandhinagar, Tongaat, 4400, South Africa
Website: Link
Who is the Best Oncologist in South Africa?
- Dr. Marli Groenewald.
- Dr. Conrad Jacobs
- Dr. Elizabeth Murray.
- Dr. Laura Serfontein.
- Dr. Ilze Fourie.
- Dr. Marianne Kruger.
- Dr. George Loots.
- Dr. Anna-Marie Visser.
What is the Cost of Chemotherapy in South Africa?
Research done in 2020 to estimate the cost of chemotherapy in the public sector came to a staggering R15 774 as the average care cost per patient. Cancer treatment is exceedingly expensive in South Africa.
Which Cancer Is The Most Treatable?
- Breast Cancer.
- Thyroid Cancer.
- Skin Cancer.
- Cervical Cancer.
- Testicular Cancer.
Where Is The Best Place To Cure Cancer?
According to a rating of the 2022–23 Best Hospitals for Cancer published on July 26 by U.S. News & World Report, the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston came in first place.
What Are The Top 3 Treatments For Cancer?
Radiation, chemotherapy, and surgery are the most often used treatments. Other choices include hormone therapy, laser therapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, and others.
What Cancers Cannot Be Cured?
Pancreatic cancer.
Esophageal cancer.
Liver and intrahepatic bile duct cancer.
Mesothelioma.
Gallbladder cancer.
Lung and bronchial cancer.
Pleural cancer.
Acute monocytic leukemia.
Can You Permanently Cure Cancer?
No type of cancer can be cured, although there are treatments that could help. Many people receive cancer treatment, live the rest of their lives, then pass away for other reasons.
Despite receiving cancer treatment, many others continue to succumb to the disease, sometimes living for years or even decades.
When Should A Cancer Patient Go To The Hospital?
You should seek medical attention in the EC if you develop chemotherapy- or radiation-induced side symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea, and you are unable to manage them with medications your doctor has given.
Pain or high fever are the two issues that cancer patients visit the EC for most frequently.
Does South Africa Have Good Doctors?
South African hospitals, both public and private, offer some of the greatest medical education, and as a result, the country’s physicians are in high demand all over the world. Excellent care is provided in South Africa’s private hospitals.
How Do You Stop Cancer Cells From Growing?
- Avoid using tobacco.
- Adopt a balanced diet.
- Keep a healthy weight and engage in physical activity.
- Don’t expose yourself to the sun.
- Get a vaccine.
- Abstain from dangerous actions.
- Get routine medical attention.
What Are The Slowest Growing Cancers?
A rare kind of tumor known as a carcinoid tumor often develops slowly. Carcinoid tumors are malignant, although they are sometimes referred to as “cancer in slow motion” since they can develop over a long period of time without symptoms.
Do All Cancers Eventually Spread?
Almost all malignancies have the potential to spread from their original location.
Can a Tumor Grow Overnight?
They appear at night while we are sleeping and spread out and expand as swiftly as they can. They are also deadly.
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